A multitude of rotors for centrifuges are known from the prior art which each have a receiving chamber that can be sealed with a lid. This protects the centrifuge and the environment from contamination in the event of a vessel rupture.
Operation safety will be increased if a mechanism is provided which locks the closure of the lid. For example, the closure can include a latching element which has an activating element provided on the top of the lid, for example a pushbutton. The latching element may furthermore be spring-loaded in a locking direction thereof so that it will automatically latch into engagement when the lid is closed, and will only be deactivated by pressing down on the pushbutton. Locking and unlocking the lid in this way is very convenient for the user.
However, practice has shown that especially with solutions of the type which enable particularly simple unlocking of the lid, there is the inherent risk of the locking device being released unintentionally. Because the lid often has a handle which can be used to carry the rotor with the lid in place. If the locking device is inadvertently deactivated in transport, the rotor will become detached from the rotor and fall to the ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,822,331 B discloses a centrifuge whose lid can be detached from the rotor by means of a quick-release fastener without the aid of a tool. The rotor in turn is screwed to a drive shaft. The screw can be released using a special tool. For this purpose, the tool is inserted through a pushbutton of the quick-release fastener. To prevent the pushbutton from being activated inadvertently, it is located in a recess provided in the handle. Nonetheless, even in this configuration, the pushbutton may still be pressed by accident, thus causing the lid to become detached from the rotor carried by means of the handle.